The No. 5 Boston University women’s ice hockey team kicks off a four-game homestand this weekend, capping off the second half of a home-and-home series against Providence College on Friday before finishing the weekend with a Sunday matinee against University of New Hampshire.
The Terriers (6-1-1, 0-0-1 Hockey East) are looking to extend their program-best seven-game undefeated streak and hope to earn their first conference win this weekend.
It could be an uphill battle for the Terriers this weekend, however, as they will be playing short-handed. Their three top scorers &- freshman forward Marie-Philip Poulin, junior defenseman Tara Watchorn and junior forward Jenn Wakefield &- will be skating for the Canadian national team in the Four Nations Cup.
The loss of these three players is especially difficult considering that after a hot start, the Terrier offense is cooling off. BU scored 27 goals in its first five games but has managed only seven goals in the last three games. Wakefield scored both goals against the Friars last weekend and Poulin captured Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Month honors for her play in October.
With the absence of Poulin, Watchorn and Wakefield, BU will be looking for stronger contributions from players like junior forward Jenelle Kohanchuk and senior forward Jillian Kirchner, who are fourth and fifth on the team respectively in total points.
But while the Terriers offense seems to have cooled down a bit, the defense is holding strong. Freshman goaltender Kerrin Sperry has emerged as the top netminder for the Terriers. She is undefeated through six games this season and boasts a 1.65 goals-against average.
This season, BU has only allowed more than two goals in a game once as No. 7 University of North Dakota scored five times in BU’s season-opening loss. The Terriers are tough on defense even when playing short-handed as the Terriers have killed 43 of 45 penalties while scoring six short-handed goals.
This weekend, however, will be all about figuring out how to score against two strong defensive teams. The Terriers will have to find a way to beat one of Hockey East’s best goalies in Providence’s Genevieve Lacasse, who stopped 40 shots against the Terriers last weekend.
On Sunday, the Terriers will likely face another top goaltender in HE, New Hampshire’s Lindsey Minton. In six games this season, Minton has earned a 0.98 goals-against average. Lacasse and Minton shared conference Defensive Player of the Week honors for their efforts last weekend, and Lacasse captured Goaltender of the Month honors for October.
Minton and the Wildcats enter the weekend riding a six-game win streak, and they are coming off a weekend in which they shut out Niagara University in both games. Home ice could be an advantage over UNH, however, as the Wildcats are undefeated at home but are 3-2 on the road.
Providence, however, enters Saturday’s game on short rest. The Friars beat Yale University on Tuesday, 3-1. Providence forward Laura Veharanta scored two goals within 10 seconds of each other only 4:17 into the first period. Veharanta did not figure onto the scoresheet in the tie against BU last weekend.
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